Taubman accused of sexually harassing employee

DETROIT (AP) — Billionaire mall developer A. Alfred Taubman is being sued by a flight attendant who says he sexually harassed her aboard his private plane.

Nicole Rock says Taubman repeatedly groped her, forcibly kissed her and attempted to perform oral sex on her. She says she worked for Taubman for six years until early 2011.

She says she was granted short-term disability leave due to stress, anxiety and depression caused by the 88-year-old Taubman. Rock is seeking $29 million in a lawsuit filed Thursday in Detroit federal court.

A message seeking comment was left with Taubman’s company, based in suburban Detroit. In 2002, Taubman served a 10-month prison sentence in a price-fixing case involving Sotheby’s auction house.